1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to a method, software and a system for reducing stress.
2. Description of Related Art
Several surveys show that many people suffer from stress at work. For example, a survey by Northwestern National Life indicates that 40% of workers report that their job is very or extremely stressful. A survey by Yale University indicates that 29% of workers report that they feel quite a bit or extremely stressed at work. It has been reported that high stress yearly generates a cost of $136 per employee, making stress very expensive for employers.
According to the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH, see, the Internet, cdc.gov/niosh/stresswk.html), job stress can be defined as the harmful physical and emotional responses that occur when the requirements of the job do not match the capabilities, resources, or needs of the worker. Job stress can lead to poor health and even injury.
The potential effects of stimuli, such as scents, images and sounds to reduce stress levels have been demonstrated. Studies suggest that this effect is strongly linked to somatic markers, which are stored in memory. These somatic markers trigger bodily sensations that accompany emotion. Music (and probably also scent and images) reinforces this process and thereby enhances naturally occurring bodily responses.
The U.S. Pat. No. 6,102,846 discloses an apparatus and method for managing a psychological and physiological state of an individual involving the use of images or stimuli, the measurement of a physiological state of the individual, and the creation of a personalized preferred response profile which is specifically tailored to the individual. With the apparatus and method disclosed, it is possible for an individual to manage and thereby lower his or her stress by viewing, for example, images which are selected based on the created personalized preferred response profile for the individual. The personalized preferred response profile is created by having the individual view, for example, a wide variety of images, and creating the profile based on those images which provide a preferred response to the individual.
It is an object of the invention to provide an improved method and system to reduce stress, in particular mental fatigue, which is effective and easy to implement.